Stuart's association with Folau goes back to the time the then Kangaroos coach chose him in 2007 to make his Test debut at 18 years and 184 days old - the youngest player to have represented Australia.

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Eels recruitment manager Peter Nolan was also the man responsible for enticing him from Melbourne to Brisbane in 2009.

But it his relationship with Hayne, with whom he long played league at Minto, and the other Parramatta players that has almost guaranteed he will be in a blue and gold jersey next season.

''The deal is definitely not done but we are doing everything we possibly can to have Israel playing for the Eels and we are doing it in consultation with the NRL,'' Stuart said. ﻿﻿﻿"We are very fortunate that he wants to play for the Eels and I think it is fantastic for rugby league."

Folau's brother, John, is already at Parramatta, while another sibling, Eni, also spent time in the Eels system. The 23-year-old has been a guest of Parramatta officials at NRL games during his two-year stint with the Giants but he insisted that it was only in the last month that he began seriously contemplating a return to rugby league.

With GWS due back at training on Friday, Folau had to make a decision now.

''It was a pretty hard decision to make and one I had been thinking about for a while,'' he said. ''In the end the passion wasn't quite there and I think if I was staying I was kind of cheating myself. I had to be honest and move forward.'' Folau, who had another two years of his lucrative AFL contract left to run, said he had not spoken to any NRL club about his future but he has been in the sight of the Eels since officials debated whether to focus their energy on signing Folau or Sonny Bill Williams.

While former coach Steve Kearney met Williams, it quickly became apparent the dual international had a handshake deal with Sydney Roosters supremo Nick Politis, a good friend of Parramatta chairman Roy Spagnolo.

Spagnolo's focus turned to Folau, with one source claiming: ''We started working on this 18 months ago. Folau was never going to last more than a year in the AFL.''

Since then, the key figure in negotiations between the Eels and the GWS pin-up has been Nolan, who is close to Folau's manager, Isaac Moses.

As far back as April, Fairfax reported that the Eels were Folau's most likely destination if he were to switch back to the NRL.

It's believed that negotiations between the parties have been intensified in recent months. However, Ken Edwards, the newly appointed chief executive of the Eels football club, denied that a deal was done.

''He is the sort of player and person that we are certainly interested in,'' he said.

''We could see him fitting into the culture that we are building here and we could see him being a part of the club going forward. We would possibly have some salary cap issues in the first year we are yet to discuss with the NRL.

''We would be interested and we would seek to talk to his management.''

The Eels have shed several high-profile players including Nathan Hindmarsh, Luke Burt, Shane Shackleton and Justin Poore. Officials were finalising their salary cap position on Thursday for 2013 and believe they have sufficient space in future years should they need to entice the Queensland and Australian three-quarter.

2 Nov
GREATER Western Sydney are planning to meet Kurt Tippett next week, as the club explores the possibility of moving some of Israel Folau's marketing millions over to the controversial former Adelaide forward.